The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Heuchera and given the cultivar name of ‘Midnight Bayou’. Heuchera is in the family Saxifragaceae. Heuchera ‘Midnight Bayou’ originated from a cross between Heuchera 796-1, a proprietary non-commercial hybrid, as the seed parent, and Heuchera 827-1, a proprietary non-commercial hybrid, as, as the pollen parent.
Compared to the seed parent, Heuchera 796-1, the new cultivar has purple rather than dark brown leaf color.
Compared to the pollen parent, Heuchera 827-1, the new cultivar has much larger leaves, that are also purple but less veiled, taller flower stalks, and a bigger habit.
Compared to Heuchera ‘Berry Smoothie’ (U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 12/653,628), the new cultivar has leaves that are dark purple with black veins rather than rose purple. The leaves of ‘Midnight Bayou’ are somewhat smaller.
This new Heuchera is uniquely distinguished by its very large purple spring leaves to rose-purple summer leaves with black veins and a silver veil. In addition it has a large mounding habit and excellent vigor.
This new cultivar has been reproduced only by asexual propagation (tip cuttings and tissue culture). Each of the progeny exhibits identical characteristics to the original plant. Asexual propagation by division and tissue culture using standard micropropagation techniques with terminal and lateral shoots, as done in Canby, Oreg., shows that the foregoing characteristics and distinctions come true to form and are established and transmitted through succeeding propagations. The present invention has not been evaluated under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may change with variations in environment without a change in the genotype of the plant.